Apr 23, 2019
Santa María la Real de La Almudena is the Catholic cathedral in Madrid, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madrid. "The cathedral is consecrated to Santa Maria de la Almudena, a name which has Arabic origins: al mudayna, means "the castle". Legend has it that in the 8th century, when the Moors invaded the fortress where Madrid now stands, the people hid an image of the Virgin in the city walls, and only when the city was reconquered in the 15th century did a wall crumble to reveal her presence once again. Some versions suggest that the legendary el Cid found the image in the wall, and the Virgen helped him to retake the city."